Celtic scenario ‘unthinkable’ amid ‘dreadful’ state of play at Rangers
Rangers progressed to the semi-finals of the Premier Sports Cup following a 2-0 win vs Hibs at Ibrox.
Russell Martin remains under serious pressure at Rangers as the side sits 11th in the William Hill Premiership.
Goals from Nico Raskin and Bojan Miovski alleviated some tension around Ibrox, as Rangers fans protested against Martin and Patrick Stewart.
Across Glasgow, rivals Celtic are also in turmoil despite being top of the league, as off-field antics in the transfer window have contributed to widespread anger.
Celtic must take advantage of issues at Rangers
In the Scottish Mail on 21 September, columnist Gary Keown highlighted that Brendan Rodgers’ side is in a frail position and they are lucky that Rangers are struggling too.
He said: “It looks like Celtic are in danger of overseeing the club collapse in on itself again.
“Blowing the league against a dreadful Rangers and Hearts and Hibs sides with a fraction of their budget seems unthinkable.”
Rangers and Celtic played out a dull 0-0 during the first Old Firm Derby of the season, despite the disparity in where both sides are in the league.
| Celtic | Matchweek | Rangers |
| 1-0 Win vs St Mirren | 1 | 1-1 Draw vs Motherwell |
| 2-0 Win vs Aberdeen | 2 | 1-1 Draw vs Dundee |
| 3-0 Win vs Livingston | 3 | 1-1 Draw vs St Mirren |
| 0-0 Draw vs Rangers | 4 | 0-0 Draw vs Celtic |
| 2-1 Win vs Kilmarnock | 5 | 2-0 Loss vs Hearts |
Celtic’s off-field struggles haven’t been exploited by Rangers, as Andrew Cavenagh faces a huge crisis in his first season as chairman.
Stewart and Kevin Thelwell have been among those to have received huge blame for Rangers’ failures.
The transfer window saw Rangers spend £10m on unproven striker Youssef Chermiti, and sign countless young players who have failed to adapt to the intensity of Scottish football.
Despite securing a much-needed victory at the weekend, the future still looks bleak for Martin.
Russell Martin must win Rangers’ next few games
Saturday marked the first time Rangers beat a Scottish side above League One this season.
Martin has little support from Rangers fans, as his possession-based style of play has been ineffective and uninspiring throughout this season.
Rangers have looked vulnerable throughout the season, with teams carving open the defence on the counter-attack.
The win vs Hibs will have lifted everyone’s confidence around Auchenhowie, yet another crucial match against Genk could define Martin’s future.
A loss in the first game of the Europa League in front of the Ibrox faithful would be disastrous, as they take on an out-of-sorts Genk side that has won just two of its seven league games this season.
Martin, Thelwell, Stewart and Cavenagh will continue to remain under constant scrutiny until the team can form a consistent run of wins together.
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